There is no New York neighborhood that boasts a richer history or more exciting present than Williamsburg. At first a quiet waterside community, Williamsburg briefly became a wealthy suburb of Manhattan in the middle of the nineteenth century. Heavy industrialization and a tidal wave of immigrants later turned Williamsburg into New York's poorest, most crowded quarter. With images drawn chiefly from the rich photographic collection of the Brooklyn Historical Society, Williamsburg illustrates the neighborhood's transformation from one of New York's most impoverished and least fashionable neighborhoods to a modern-day example of the city's capacity for self-renewal.

(Unlocking the Masters). Beethoven's works for solo piano the sonatas, variations, and bagatelles and the five concertos for piano and orchestra stand at the heart of the repertory. Beethoven's Piano Music: A Listener's Guide, by Victor Lederer, will help the motivated reader understand this popular but often knotty music. The bulk of the text consists of a movement-by-movement analysis of the 32 sonatas, fascinating for their individuality and for the way they trace the master's development. In addition to the sonatas, Lederer also takes the reader through the most significant of the variations. The greatest is the Diabelli, Beethoven's monumental takeoff on a trivial theme, but three more sets, the 32 Variations in C minor, the Variations on an Original Theme, Op. 34, and the "Eroica" Variations, Op. 35, are also of the highest quality. And the Bagatelles, Opp. 33, 119, and 126, are short but strong studies that display different aspects of Beethoven's musical personality. Finally, Lederer discusses the five piano concertos in detail, showing the influence of the sublime models of Mozart in the first three concertos, with Beethoven boldly finding his own voice with the beloved Fourth and Fifth Concertos. The book comes with a Naxos CD containing performances by pianist Jeno Jando that illustrate the text.

Here is an essential guide to the musical works of Robert Schumann, along with an engrossing account of his tumultuous life. Many, if not most, major composers improve over the course of their careers, but the reverse is unfortunately the case with Schumann, whose talent was seriously compromised in later years by a series of physical and mental illnesses. Throughout Schumann: A Listener s Guide, Victor Lederer provides unflinching critiques of the weaknesses that plagued Schumann s style, alongside his triumphs. Lederer explores the full spectrum of the master composer s oeuvre from his popular early music and lieder, or songs, to his works for chamber ensembles composed in 1842, to his four beloved, if flawed, symphonies. Lederer also takes in Schumann s dramatic works, particularly Genoveva, his only opera, and Incidental Music to Byron s Manfred, an underappreciated musical score. Schumann: A Listener s Guide comes with a CD with two of the master s most daring imaginative flights, the Davidsbundlertanze for piano and Dichterliebe A Poet s Love one of the greatest song cycles and works for voice. Both are discussed in detail in the text.

Giuseppe Verdi's career forms one of the loveliest arcs in musical history. The passion of his works resonates universally while the sophistication of his middle and late operas satisfies demanding ears and tastes. In ÊVerdi: The Operas and Choral WorksÊ Victor Lederer surveys every one of the master's 28 operas and his greatest choral pieces showing Verdi's growth as a musical dramatist ä he would revolutionize the hidebound conventions of 19th-century Italian opera ä and his single-minded pursuit of dramatic truth.ÞAfter describing the chaotic milieu in which Verdi learned his craft the book provides act-by-act analyses of the early masterpieces ÊNabuccoÊ ÊErnaniÊ and ÊMacbethÊ. The neglected operas from the composer's self-described years in the galleys are covered together. Lederer then takes readers through the magnificent sequence of Verdi operas from ÊLuisa MillerÊ onward including the fine but underrated ÊStiffelioÊ. Each of the late operas ä ÊDon CarloÊ ÊAidaÊ and ÊOtelloÊ and ÊFalstaffÊ the twin Shakespearean masterworks that crown Verdi's oeuvre ä is discussed at length in its own chapter. Lederer also examines Verdi's monumental Requiem along with the choral ÊQuattro pezzi sacriÊ Verdi's sublime final achievement. The book comes with a Naxos CD of musical selections representing highlights from throughout Verdi's long remarkable career.

An enigma to those who knew him, the early-20th-century French master Maurice Ravel composed some of the most popular and beloved music in the repertory. In Ravel: A Listener's Guide, Victor Lederer surveys and explores this master's refined and utterly distinctive oeuvre. Ravel is often mentioned in the same breath as his older contemporary Claude Debussy, but the works of the two composers display as many differences as similarities. Where Debussy rejected existing forms, the structuralist Ravel embraced the baroque suite and classical sonata form as vehicles for his ideas, in addition to his own concise inventions. At his best, which is where we usually find this focused stylist, passion flows just beneath some of the most exquisitely crafted surfaces in music, under which lurk ironies that raise as many questions as they answer. A perfect example is Bolero, Ravel's most famous work; Lederer analyzes the music and looks at the outsized role it has assumed in our culture. Lederer walks the reader and listener through Ravel's relatively small but crucial contributions to orchestral, vocal, chamber, and piano music. Ravel's two operas, idiosyncratic and underappreciated, are examined in detail as well. The book includes a Naxos CD with examples from across the master's career.

A bold innovator in the 19th century, Hector Berlioz was a musical dramatist with an output that is less familiar than it should be and often misunderstood. Victor Lederer introduces and surveys the music of Berlioz-from the early symphonic masterworks to the sacred music and concert overtures and to his mighty five-act opera Les Troyens. His most famous and popular pieces are the thrilling programmatic symphonies, the Symphonie fantastique and Harold en Italie. The "dramatic symphonies" Romeo et Juliette and La damnation de Faust are both driven by conflict and excitement, which contrast his piercing, long-limbed melodies and startling harmonic shifts. Berlioz's strongly profiled musical style possesses high rhythmic energy, and manic outbursts that are instantly identifiable as his, and he is widely acknowledged as one of the most innovative and effective orchestrators in history.

This is an in-depth study of a seminal work, first performed in 1727.Johann Sebastian Bach's the "St. Matthew Passion" stands as a singular expression of religious sensibility. Conceived within the constraints of Bach's role as cantor of the St. Thomas Church in the provincial German city of Leipzig, the music has a power and profundity that readily transcend time and place. Yet the darkness of the subject - the betrayal, trial, and crucifixion of Jesus - and the complexity and sophistication of Bach's compositional techniques can be difficult listening for even the most eager novice.By highlighting the inspiration Bach drew from opera, this book truly illuminates the hybrid forms that comprise the work, thereby clarifying many of the composer's dramatic strategies. Drawn from the "Gospel of St. Matthew", the narrative sections - featuring characters including the narrator - Evangelist, Pilate, Peter, Judas, and Jesus himself - have tremendous theatrical power, while non-Biblical arias and chorales offer moments of deep reflection and consolation. This book shows the willing but intimidated beginner the way into the intricacies of Bach's masterwork while unveiling subtleties for the more knowledgeable listener as well. Finally, Lederer recounts the fascinating performance history of the piece and looks at the merits of different recordings of this extraordinary work, indisputably one of the cornerstones of Western music."Magnum Opus" is a series for anyone seeking a greater familiarity with the cornerstones of Western Classical Music - operatic, choral and symphonic. Always passionate, down-to-earth, and authoritative on the works and their creators, "Magnum Opus" is an indispensable resource for anyone's musical library and the perfect gift for the music-lover in your life.